March 31的消息， Translation: The news on March 31, or March 31 news. (Note: There seems to be a repetition of "消息" (news/information) in the original sentence, which I've translated as "news" both times for consistency. If this was unintended, please clarify or provide additional context.)Today, Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry announced that it will provide an additional subsidy of up to 802.5 billion yen (approximately 38.871 billion yuan) to chip manufacturer Rapidus to support its advanced semiconductor manufacturing project.

Thus, the Japanese government’s cumulative support for Rapidus will reach approximately 1.72 trillion yen (about 83.13 billion yuan RMB).

Of the additional 802.5 billion yen, 675.5 billion yen will be used to support the front-end processes of chip manufacturing, and another 127 billion yen will be allocated to support back-end processes, including chip packaging and testing.

The Japanese government has submitted a relevant legal amendment to the current Diet to provide a legal basis for its support to Rapidus. In addition to 1.7225 trillion yen, it plans to invest another 100 billion yen in the second half of 2025 based on the amended law.

Rapidus aims to mass-produce 2nm chips by 2027 and will begin trial production in April. In an interview last year, the chairman of Rapidus stated that this plan represents the "last chance" for Japan's semiconductor industry to return to the global map.